Re: [SL] Prepayment / Contract Services

[Matthew B. <mat...@co...>]

Seems to me it wouldn't go under AP or AR, but that it should be entered 
as some sort of Liability.  For example, we have set up (in QuickBooks, 
though) an account that is called Retainers as a Liability account.  
This account just has the dollar amount the client has paid.  As you 
execute the work, then realize the income, the money is pulled out of 
the Retainer account and placed in the Operating Account at that time.

Useful?

Steve Switzer wrote:

>I haven't received any further replies to this and figured I'd "bump"
>the thread. I need to have this ability shortly, as I'll be entering a
>contract very soon. I brainstormed a bit and tried to come up with a way
>to handle this with different AR entries. However, I quickly realized
>this won't work since the whole idea of an "AR" is to show that someone
>owes *you* money. So, I bill a customer for a bank of hours (they
>receive an invoice), and they pay it. The invoice is closed, since the
>payment was satisfied. What they were billed for must then go
>*somewhere* to cancel out the actual hours that I've logged. This almost
>seems like an AP/AR scenario against a part, where I've been paid for a
>part (really labor, but would need inventory), but then I have to pay a
>vendor and order the parts (the actual labor is performed). However, I
>cna't figure out how to get the time cards involved with this. Then
>again, should they be?
>Thoughts are greatly appreciated. *Somebody* must be doing this out
>there. Where are you? :)
>
>Thanks,
>Steve
>
>
>On Mon, 2006-11-06 at 10:34 -0500, Mark Bucciarelli wrote:
>
>  
>
>>On Mon, Nov 06, 2006 at 10:12:04AM -0500, Steve Switzer wrote:
>>    
>>
>>>Hello,
>>>   I currently use timecards / sales orders / invoices to track and bill
>>>for my time to a client. My client is now interested in going on a
>>>contact where they pay for 10 hour a week regardless of the time I spend
>>>there. However, it shoudl eventually balance out - I may spend 5 hours
>>>one week, 20 hours another week, 8 another, 2 another, 6 the next, etc.
>>>   What I need to happen is:
>>>1) Automatic invoicing for 10 hours every week. (easily done with
>>>recurring transactions)
>>>2) Tracking the balance of hours that they have paid for but not
>>>consumed
>>>3) Have timecards deduct from the balance of hours they prepaid
>>>4) Other jobs and product sales should not be intermingled with the
>>>hours. In other words, I don't want to track that they have $1000 worth
>>>of hours available, then sell them a $500 device to find that they have
>>>$50 worth of hours available... this should be completely separate.
>>>Also, I'd much rather track the available hours in *hours*, not
>>>*dollars*. :)
>>>5) Ability to report on hours balance is a must.
>>>
>>>Can anyone point out a way to do this with current features, or offer a
>>>quote for custom development?
>>>      
>>>
>>First idea I had is to poke around to see if you can use parts for
>>this, becase I know you can maintain inventory.   That would give
>>you hours.
>>
>>Thinking a bit more, it's probably much easier just to use a line
>>item on your chart of accounts.  If you get paid for ten hours,
>>but only work four, it seems like the value of that six hours
>>would be a liability.  This would track dollar value, not hours.
>>
>>I would think your invoice to the customer should crebit a
>>liability account (as that 10 hours is what you owe them), then
>>the invoice for actual time should debit that account.  I _think_
>>you could set the Income Account field for two different
>>Service's (one for the invoice to the customer and one for the
>>actual hours) to get what you want here.
>>
>>m
>>
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